Showtime Renews Newsmagazine Series “Vice,” with Paola Ramos, for Third & Fourth Seasons

Paola Ramos isn’t removing her vice

Showtime has renewed its newsmagazine series Vice, featuring the 35-year-old Mexican-American journalist, for a third and fourth season.

The series hails from Shane Smith’s youth-focused media company.

The third season will launch on May 1 and will run eight episodes through June 19 with a fourth eight episodes airing later this year.

The half-hour series will feature immersive reporting from the frontlines of global conflict and civil uprisings and this season will feature new stories from its team of global correspondents.

Vice has run for two seasons on Showtime, having previously aired six seasons on HBO.

In addition to Ramos, the reporting team of diverse group of journalists includes Hind Hassan, Alzo Slade, Seb Walker, Gianna Toboni, Ben C. Solomon, David Noriega and Krishna Andavolu.

Produced by Vice News, Beverly Chase is the executive producer and showrunner for Vice. Craig Thomson is co-executive producer, and Subrata De is the senior executive producer for the series.

Lilia Luciano Named LA-Based CBS News Correspondent

Lilia Luciano is ready for full-time work…

The 36-year-old Puerto Rican investigative reporter and documentary filmmaker has been named a correspondent for CBS News based in Los Angeles.

Lilia LucianoLuciano joined the network in March, 2020 as a freelance correspondent, and has covered major stories on the West Coast including the COVID-19 pandemic, the Black Lives Matter protests in Portland, immigration issues at the border and wildfires in Oregon and California.

Luciano previously was an investigative reporter at the ABC affiliate in Sacramento from 2016 to 2019. She also was the chief investigative correspondent for Discovery Channel’s Border Live, and worked as a host and contributor on various platforms for Vice. She also was a correspondent for NBC News, reporting across the network platforms in English and Spanish.

She directed and produced Wars of Others, an HBO Latino documentary about the War on Drugs and the consequences for Colombian farmers. She won a Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism in 2018 for a series on Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria, and a regional Edward R. Murrow Award for her coverage of the California wildfires.

She was born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and is fluent in Spanish, English and Portuguese. She graduated from the University of Miami with degrees in economics and broadcast journalism.

HBO Max Releases Trailer for Barbie Ferriera’s Original Film “Unpregnant”

Barbie Ferriera is hittin’ the road…

HBO Max has released the first trailer for the streamer’s original film Unpregnant, starring the 23-year-old Brazilian American actress and plus-size model.

Barbie Ferriera

The film centers on two teenage girls going on a road trip from Missouri to New Mexico in order to get one of them an abortion without her parents’ and boyfriend’s knowledge.

The movie stars Haley Lu Richardson as ambitious 17-year-old Veronica, who gets pregnant, and then recruits estranged friend Bailey (Ferriera) to drive her in a stolen Trans-Am to get the procedure she needs.

The film is directed by Rachel Lee Goldenberg, who also wrote the film with the authors of the 2019 novel it’s based on, Jenni Hendriks and Ted Caplan, plus Jennifer Kaytin Robinson and William Parker.

Ferriera’s other credits include Vice’s How to Behave, as well as HBO’s Divorce and Euphoria.

Showtime Renews Paola Ramos’ Docuseries “Vice” for Second Season

The Show(time) must go on for Paola Ramos

Showtime has ordered a second season of its docuseries Vice, featuring the Cuban and Mexican American journalist as one of its correspondents.

The renewal comes shortly after the series wrapped its first season on Showtime and received a 2020 Emmy nomination for Outstanding Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special, the first Emmy nomination on the network.

“In the most challenging conditions imaginable, Vice serves as our collective conscience, delivering vital reporting from around the world, often at great risk to themselves,” said Vinnie Malhotra, EVP, Nonfiction Programming, Showtime Networks Inc. “We could not be more proud of the work the team has done, and we’ve marveled at their exceptional investigative and in-depth reporting. We anxiously await what Vice will tackle in the coming season.”

This past season, Ramos and her fellow Vice journalists quickly adapted to cover stories of the COVID-19 pandemic and its rippling effect on local communities around the world, reporting from high-risk epicenters in New York, Italy, Brazil, Iran, Cambodia and more.

Each half-hour episode of Vice pursues untold stories on the environment, social justice, civil rights and identity, tackling complex geopolitical stories from all corners of the globe.

In addition to Ramos, the daughter of journalist Jorge Ramos, the Vice reporting team includes journalists Isobel Yeung, Gianna Toboni, Alzo Slade, Suroosh Alvi, Hind Hassan, David Noriega, Krishna Andavolu, Ben Anderson, Dexter Thomas and Seb Walker.

Produced by Vice News, Beverly Chase is the executive producer and showrunner for Vice.

Vice previously aired for six seasons on HBO, earning 12 Emmy nominations and winning two.

“We’re hugely thankful to Showtime for their dedication to the pursuit of compelling international journalism in what continues to be an era-defining year for the world,” said Chase. “Journalism is essential, and our team of award-winning reporters, producers, editors and DPs are thrilled to be back to deliver more impactful storytelling next season.”

Soledad O’Brien Named to Peabody Board of Directors

Soledad O’Brien is on board

In an effort to advance the organization’s commitment to storytelling, Peabody has appointed six new members to its bicoastal board of directors, including the 53-year-old half-Afro-Cuban American journalist.

Soledad O'Brien

Joining O’Brien, a presenter on HBO’s Real Sportsand host of Hearst Television’s Matter Of Fact with Soledad O’Brien, on the board are Chris McCarthyViacomCBS’ newly appointed president of entertainment and youth brands, and ESPN’s executive vice president of content, Connor Schell.

NPReditorial director Nancy Barnesand UnivisionCommunications’ executive vice president of government and corporate affairs Jessica Herrera-Flaniganhave also joined the board.

The five executives will serve on Peabody’s East Coast board, with the sixth new arrival, CAApartner Steven Lafferty, joining the organization’s West Coast board.

The bicoastal boards are distinct from the traditional board of jurors, which hands out the Peabody Awards. Existing board members include Vicechief Nancy DubucPBS CEO Paula Kergerand Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos.

Peabody executive director Jeffrey Jonessaid: “The intellectual capital and energy our boards bring is unparalleled, and we are excited to welcome these new members as they help us extend our reach through new partnerships and public engagements.”

Paola Ramos Joins Vice News as Correspondent

Paola Ramos is joining the Vicesquad…

The Latina journalist is joining Vice News as a correspondent, starting this week, in the first notable new hire by Jesse Angelo since he joined the company as head of news and entertainment in June.

Ramos has previously written for Vice.com and hosted Latin-X, a Vice series focused on under-reported stories about the Latinx community. 

In her new role, Ramos will work across platforms. Two key venues for her work will be Vice and Vice News Tonight, which are both set to relaunch on new networks after a multi-year deal with HBO wound down a few months ago. Vice, a documentary series, will debut on Showtime next spring, and Vice News Tonight will start airing on the Viceland cable network in early 2020.

“Paola is an extraordinary talent and has done some incredible reporting in her career. The depth of her coverage on the Latinx community goes beyond the typical stories of immigration and the crisis at the border, and taps into underrepresented issues that matter to Millennial and Gen Z viewers,” Angelo said. “She connects with audiences in ways that make her exactly the type of person we want to tell Vice News stories.”

A regular contributor to Telemundo and MSNBC, Ramos is the former Deputy Director of Hispanic Media for Hillary Clinton and a former political appointee in the Obama White House. She holds degrees from Barnard Collegeand Harvard’sKennedy School.

Next year “will go down in history as one of the most consequential years of our lifetime and I cannot think of a better platform to inspire and mobilize young people across the country,” Ramos said. “I look forward to telling stories that impact our generation, to uncovering untold truths and to shedding light on the voices that are on the front lines of change.”

Barbie Ferreira to Star in the HBO Max Film “UNPregnant”

Barbie Ferreirais reporting for BFF duty…

 The 22-year-old Brazilian American actress and model will star in HBO MAX’s adaptation of Jenni Hendriks and Ted Caplan’s novel UNPregnant.

Barbie Ferreira

Ferreira will star opposite Haley Lu Richardson in the film, which will be directed by Rachel Lee Goldenberg.

UNpregnant tells the story of 17-year-old Veronica (Richardson), who never thought she’d want to fail a test—that is, until she finds herself staring at a piece of plastic with two solid pink lines. With a promising college-bound future now disappearing before her eyes, Veronica considers a decision she never imagined she’d have to make. This tough and never-taken-lightly decision leads her on a 900+ mile road trip to New Mexico over three days with her ex-best friend Bailey (Ferreira), where they discover that one of the most important factors in your life is who your friends are.

The film hails from Erik Feig’s Picturestart and Greg Berlanti Productions.

Ferreira most recently starred on HBO’s Zendaya-led drama series Euphoria, as well as appearances on Divorce.

Ferreira starred in the Vice series How to Behave, about etiquette, which earned her a Webby Award for Best Web Personality/Host. She also starred in the Teen Vogue web series Body Party, about body positivity.

The Kid Mero’s “Desus & Mero” to Premiere on Viceland in October

The Kid Mero is headed to late night next month…

Viceland will premiere its new late-night show Desus & Mero, featuring the Dominican American writer, comedian, TV personality, on writer, comedian, TV personality, on Monday, October 17 at 11:00 pm.

The Kid Mero

Desus & Mero picks up where the duo’s Bodega Boys podcast ends, featuring the Bronx-bred pals Desus Nice and The Kid Mero sounding off on the issues of the day, covering news, pop culture and day to day life.

The Kid Mero, whose real name is Joel Martinez, rose to prominence alongside his fellow Bronx native Desus Nice with their Complex TV Desus vs. Mero, which was a 46-episode podcast that was first released on December 18, 2013.

The show will originate from Vice’s Brooklyn headquarters.

Luna to Star in the Dystopian Love Story “The Bad Batch”

Diego Luna is part of a bad, bad batch

The 35-year-old Mexican actor has joined the ensemble cast of the dystopian love story The Bad Batch.

Diego Luna

Luna has been cast opposite Suki Waterhouse, Keanu Reeves and Jim Carrey in the Ana Lily Amirpour-directed film from Megan Ellison’s Annapurna Pictures and VICE.

Jimmy, Waterhouse will play the charter of Arlen, Reeves will play The Dream, and Carrey The Hermit.

Production is set to start in L.A. on the Texas wasteland cannibal tale next month. Luna will play

Winner of the Gotham Award for Breakthrough Director for her debut, the Iranian vampire feature A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night, Amirpour is also writing The Bad Batch.

Pentatonix Among 50 Acts to Be Honored at the 2015 YouTube Music Awards

There’s no doubt Kirstie Maldonado is YouTube sensation… After all, the video for PentatonixGrammy-winningDaft Punk” single has garnered more than 122-million views alone.

And now the 22-year-old half-Mexican/part-Spanish singer and her Pentatonix band mates are being recognized for their online success.

Pentatonix

Pentatonix, which had the best-selling album by a group last year, is one of 50 acts that will be feted during this year’s YouTube Music Awards.

The platform noted that the winners were “chosen by the fans” as they “showed the biggest growth in views, subscribers and engagement over the last six months on YouTube.”

Collectively, the winners – which include Fifth Harmony, Beyonce, Ariana Grande, Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga, Sam Smith, Sia, Pharrell Williams, Brad Paisley, Tori Kelly and Katy Perry — have over 146 million subscribers and 44 billion lifetime views.

To celebrate the winners, the ceremony on March 23 will comprise of premiering a slew of new Vice-produced music videos by Charli XCX, Ed Sheeran, Martin Garrix, Cahoots, Max Schneider, Migos, Megan Nicole, Nicky Jam and Shamir, among others.

The move follows the platform’s first-ever YouTube Music Awards in 2013, which streamed live from New York City’s Pier 36. Jason Schwartzman and comedian Reggie Watts co-hosted, while Spike Jonze oversaw the creative direction of the ceremony, which also featured the production of live music videos by Lindsay Sterling, Avicii and Arcade Fire.